Lorna Bourg cofounded Southern Mutual Help Association, Inc. (SMHA) and serves as President and CEO. She is a MacArthur Fellow and Fannie Mae Foundation James Johnson Fellow with nearly 50 years’ experience organizing in rural Louisiana communities.

Lorna has extensive professional experience with investments, fund development and management, budgeting and rural community development program design and implementation. Her unique perspective on persistent poverty and systemic inequity drives her to create opportunity out of chaos, policy change out of necessity and innovative institutions where none existed and has helped create over $1 billion in economic impact in rural Louisiana.